Sino–Japanese War (IOT14)
The Sino–Japanese War (2104–2107) was a conflict between the Empire of Japan and its neighbours in Imperium Offtopicum XIV. Initiated by Japanese expansion into mainland China, its original focus was nondescript warlord states, but as intervention in Vietnam spiralled into open war, the People's Republic of Sichuan began to pursue a containment policy. Japan's rejection of the 2105 Zhengzhou Ultimatum prompted Sichuan and the Gangnam Republic to join the war, which merged with the Vietnam crisis to become the Pacific War. Like Vietnam, the war in China was characterized by bloodthirsty tactics and utter disregard for human rights by Japan. Japanese expansionism In Summer 2104, Japan announced it was embarking on a "peacekeeping" mission to end warlordism in China."War in China: Peacekeeping mission by Japan", Summer 2104. Commanded by Toyotomi Hideyioshi, three army groups invaded Zhejiang province and the island of Taiwan. The invasion's use of conventional tactics, including advance airstrikes against military bases and communications infrastructure, provoked immediate denouncement by the United Arab Republic, which questioned the mission's commitment to human rights. When a formal petition was submitted to the United Nations for humanitarian intervention in Vietnam, Tokyo announced a similar mission. That autumn, the original Chinese expedition was reorganized as the "Imperial Mainland Japanese Army", preparing for fresh offensives into Jiangsu against a prominent warlord identified as Sun Ce."The Imperial Mainland Japanese Army: New operations in China", Fall 2104 Japanese companies began moving into liberated territories, exploiting Chinese citizens as a cheap labour force and seizing resources to develop local industry for the Japanese economy. A UAR communiqué to the Gangnam Republic seeking information on the status of China prompted the Roman Empire to annul its pledge of military support to the Vietnamese mission only moments after the agreement, stating "Japan isn't expanding peacefully, or have peaceful intents.""Roman Empire withdraws military assistance to Japan", Fall 2104 [sic] This was followed by a formal denouncement of Japanese expansionism by Monaco, stating "we do not approve of the Japanese government using the tragedies in the region for territorial gain.""Monaco condemns Japanese aggression", Fall 2104. Hostilities in Vietnam Japan deployed to Vietnam in the winter, independent of a UN-sanctioned mission. While Tokyo did not vote against Resolution 4, it quickly adopted an obstructionist policy, and UN forces en route to Hue disappeared in the "Japan Controlled Zone" under mysterious circumstances. Texark agents subsequently revealed the Imperial Japanese Navy was under standing orders to shoot UN vessels on sight. Vietnamese warlords used the threat of Japan to consolidate their power through protection rackets, forming a pseudo-state in 2105 under Ngô Quang Thuần. In early 2105, UN personnel found a derelict oil tanker in the JCZ containing the missing crew alongside Japanese and French personnel, all victims of violent death, and a large cargo of weapons-grade plutonium. While Tokyo had initially agreed to UN inspectors the previous season, its subsequent obstinacy led to Japan's suspension in the General Assembly, its wholesale withdrawal from the UN, and its invasion of Ho Chi Minh City in the summer. Mainland ramp-up Concurrent with the beginning of the Vietnam expedition, Tokyo drastically increased its military deployment in mainland China, despite the Army's own claims rebel forces were beaten and bloody. Prime Minister Takeshi Ruchang stated the show of force was in part an attempt to intimidate its mounting international opposition. Japanese media claimed Sun Ce committed suicide following the takeover of Shandong that season. The military began planning expansion into Hebei, targeting the warlord Cao Qing headquartered in Beijing. While Japan courted the People's Republic of Sichuan for its pan-Asian alliance, the invitation was declined. When in 2105 Chengdu hinted it would pursue unilateral aggressive action against the Hanoi Council, Tokyo adopted similar hostile rhetoric as it had against UNVIFOR. Zhengzhou Ultimatum and war against Sichuan Shortly following the 18 July attack, Chengdu issued the Zhengzhou Ultimatum, upholding the United Arab Republic's ultimatum for Vietnam and demanding Japanese withdrawal from all Chinese territories. Gangnam announced the termination of its alliance and declared unilateral basing rights to the UN mission, although stopped short of declaring war. Tokyo refused the ultimatum and vowed to conquer the "Communist bandits";https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/imperium-offtopicum-xiv.517532/page-35#post-13012630 Chengdu proceeded to declare war, with Gangnam following suit the next season. Ruchang dictatorship and Sino–Korean phony war :"Seeing as Japan has somehow managed to use divide and conquer tactics by complete accident we must commend both Gangnam and China for giving so much aid to Japan in their war effort. Truly." —Civ'edhttps://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/imperium-offtopicum-xiv.517532/page-46#post-13027866 Using the war as a pretext for national emergency, Prime Minister Ruchang suspended elections in the winter, declaring martial law and assuming personal command of the Navy after Imperial appointment as Shogun. Chengdu, meanwhile, declared de jure authority over all of China, reconstituting as the "Grand Union of the Six Nations".The Declaration of Formation of the Grand Union of the Six Nations of China", Winter 2105. It demanded the immediate withdrawal of Korea from Manchuria and the Beijing region; Gangnam offered a compromise by which Manchuria would be governed as a condominium until after the war; Chengdu's hardline response prompted Gangnam to declare war, offering a cease-fire to Japan despite having rebuffed an offer to switch sides moments earlier, only to subsequently reaffirm hostilities against both countries. Outrage by other players and thinly-veiled threats by the game moderator prompted Bair_the_Normal and ChesterBannington to ultimately cancel the war with the Peace Summit of Heilongjiang. Final mainland campaigns By Spring 2106, the ground offensive had driven into Anhui province, but Korean forces expelled the Japanese toehold in Tianjin. Gangnam began an aggressive propaganda campaign at year's start, targeting both occupied China and disaffected Japanese citizens, offering incentives for defection. Deciding to abandon Vietnam to reinforce the Chinese front, the Japanese Army launched a scorched-earth retreat, infecting prisoners of war with biological agents and levelling the city of Hanoi; however, the convoys fell pray to coalition airstrikes and the actual reinforcements were below expectations. By summer the northern countercampaign had failed and a further offensive into the Chinese interior was thwarted in spite of numerical superiority, while China reclaimed Zhejiang. A major earthquake struck Tokyo that season; the government attacked flagging public support by arming far-right militias to intimidate political opponents as part of Ruchang's consolidation of a cult of personality. Testifying to its flagging war effort, the government announced the deployment of several experimental tank designs, notably the "Takeshi Ruchang" ultraheavy tank, which Germany deemed utterly unfeasible given Japan's economic situation. Poison food crisis and Japanese collapse In preparation for the armoured assault, China evacuated frontline cities for use as strategic fortresses, stonewalling the summer offensive. Having concentrated its forces in northern China, the Japanese army was swiftly overpowered in Hainan, although the island was still marked as Japanese on the turn map. Despite positing itself as neutral, the Indonesian Republic secretly conspired to a food sabotage campaign, resulting in the mass poisoning of twenty million citizens, effectively one-third of the Japanese workforce. The incident was initially blamed on the UN coalition, and Ruchang seized on public backlash to usurp control of most of the remaining state bureaucracy, ordering the deployment of a further field army of mostly conscript soldiers. Ruchang subsequently dissolved the Imperial Diet, becoming dictator de jure with the executive reduced to a twelve-member advisory council. Resisting calls for unconditional surrender, Tokyo attempted to negotiate separate peace agreements with China and Gangnam to undermine concerted international pressure. Chengdu ultimately upheld the coalition's collective terms, which included the criminal prosecution of the government and military leadership for war crimes. Tokyo's continued refusal to admit defeat amid a rapidly deteriorating domestic situation led to a short-lived civil war in the winter and the complete collapse of the Japanese government 4 February 2107, ending the war by default. See also * Vietnam War (IOT14) * Pacific War (IOT14) References Category:Wars in Asia Category:Wars in IOT14 Category:Pacific War (IOT14)